Daddy Seahorse
by KidatHeart5
Summary: This is basically "Extant", Olympians style. Poseidon, earth shaker and King of the Seas, is shocked to learn that he's pregnant! As he unravels the mystery of how his unborn child came to be, sinister forces close in and put the lives of Poseidon and his baby in terrible danger. AU of George O'Connors's "The Olympians"
It was a calm and sunny day on the beach, a perfect day for Rhode, the daughter of Poseidon and Amphitrite, to collect beautiful seashells not used by aquatic creatures. This was one of her favorite pastimes besides picking flowers and playing on the beach with her family. One of her favorite places to go to was Rhodes, an island her father had created the day she was born. It was also on this island that she saw something peculiar.

Rhode had combed two-thirds of the beach when she heard coughing and gagging. Having her mother's caring spirit, she rushed up the hill to see what the matter was. To her surprise, she saw her father retching over a pit he had created.

Being the innocent child she was, Rhode asked in concern, "Father? Are you sick?"

Poseidon turned to his young daughter. Rhode saw that he looked tired and his skin was a tint greener than usual.

Poseidon answered wearily, "I'll be fine, Rhode. I'm sure I'll feel better in a day or two."

When Rhode went back to the beach, Poseidon laid his head on the rock he was leaning on. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He was lethargic, nauseous, and cranky for the last several days. Gods never got sick, but the more possible reason would be if they were fed poison or had parasites inside of them. Kronos had swallowed Poseidon and four of his siblings, but the sea god never remembered swallowing anyone whole. Besides, he didn't want to.

Poseidon was feeling tired all the time, which contributed to his nausea and moodiness. He didn't understand. He had prompt bedtimes and was getting a full night's sleep. And yet, why did he still feel tired? He was afraid of telling anyone about his condition. If the Olympians knew something was wrong with Poseidon, they might say that he was getting seasick.

That would be far from the truth. Poseidon felt drawn to the sea and it suited him perfectly. However, he did have his doubts, partly because he had dreamed an existence as a stallion while he was inside Kronos' belly. In his dream, he had it all: a mate, a foal, and a life in the outside world. But when Poseidon was upchucked, his fantasy popped like a bubble as soon as he landed in the sea. He felt crushed that his fantasy wasn't real, so he kept his secret all to himself. He surely wouldn't expect anyone – not even his siblings – to understand, so why should they understand what he was going through now?

But deep within him, Poseidon knew that something wasn't right. If he was sick, then he had to find a cure. But who would help him find out what was going on with him? His brow furrowed when he thought of a god with medical expertise. He disliked him, but didn't fully hate him. Whether Poseidon liked it or not, he had to turn to Apollo.

On Mount Olympus, Poseidon was in Apollo's private quarters while the sun god dug around for medical tools.

Apollo said, "You know, you have a very strange case on your hands, Poseidon. You don't remember eating anything poisonous or vomit-inducing; you've been getting a full night's sleep but still feel fatigued; and you've been acting up the waves in the sea and sunk 18 ships in one month." He then whistled, "That's gotta be a record for you."

Poseidon said, "I don't intend to make records, Apollo. Something is wrong with me and I want to know what."

Apollo remarked, "Like we haven't noticed."

Poseidon clenched his fist and ground his teeth, but he slowly calmed down, remembering that this was another mood swing. He said in a low voice, "Amphitrite's certainly noticed."

"Huh. Girl must have a keen eye for things." Apollo then pulled out a dagger and said, "Ah-ha! Just what I need." He sat before Poseidon and asked, "Can you give me your hand please? I just need your ichor so I can concentrate on it and receive a vision of the cure."

Poseidon nodded and held out his hand. He winced when Apollo sliced the dagger across the sea god's palm. When Apollo was done, Poseidon squeezed his hand and the wound vanished. Apollo peered into the ichor lining the dagger...and foresaw more than he would've liked.

The sun god fell backwards and cried, "Oh, gods!"

Poseidon was startled by Apollo's sudden reaction and assumed that it wasn't good news. He peered down at Apollo and asked in concern, "What it is, Apollo? What have you seen?"

Apollo rose back up on his feet and said, "Okay, this is going to be crazy. I hope you're sitting down. In fact, _I_ need to sit down, too."

Poseidon grew more concerned with what Apollo was saying. What was happening to the sea god? Was he losing his powers, his immortality? Was he cursed by someone more powerful than him? Was he afflicted with a poison that was made from adamantine, a powerful substance that could contain a god?

Despite all of the emotions roiling in his chest, Poseidon remained calm on the outside and asked, "Apollo, what is happening to me?"

Apollo sighed, "This is going to sound weird, I know. But let me ask you something: do you remember when Athena was born?"

Poseidon nodded despite being confused by the change of subject, "Yes. I was there. Zeus had a painful headache and so Hephaistos had to cleave his head open. When that happened, Athena came out a fully-grown woman."

"Well, I don't think it's going to be like that this time."

Poseidon grew more confused and he asked, "'This time'?"

Apollo hesitantly explained, "There's no easy way to say this, but…Poseidon, you're pregnant."

If Poseidon's skin wasn't pale before, it was now.


End file.
